Up a Tree!

Yesterday was Clay's birthday, so he pretty much got to do what he wanted.  I can't imagine telling my child no on their special day! : )  He'd already eaten out (PF Changs) on Sunday, but he'd told me he wanted breakfast dinner (specifically: eggs, toast, bacon, and pancakes), and some pomegranates for his after-school snack.  I'd shopped and gotten all of the above, and after school he'd asked to go to Jacob's house (his best friend's).  Gigi and Papa stopped by-and we called Clay to come home-just in time to see the other two up a tree!

I have to tell you, I didn't realize we had a tree that was climbable.  We have some trees on our lot (that have survived the ice storms), but their low limbs are all cut.  They just aren't climbers.  We've planted about a hundred trees on our lot since we moved here (I think our count is around 96, but 4 have been replanted after they've died, and two just fell last week).  So, really over a hundred planted.  Anyway, all this to say that in the five+ years since we've lived here, I can't believe we have a tree large enough to climb (and support my kids!).  But.  Leave it to a sycamore to grow like no one's business!  We learned this early, so now we have a few.  They are awesome fast growers, they have H-U-G-E leaves (great for shade so plant them on the south/west sides!), beautiful peel-y bark, and a great shape-especially if you get one with multiple trunks.  Once you have one, sometimes you get new baby trees, and we plant them in other places.  Even oaks don't always make it through a transplant, but by-golly, a sycamore does!  So..my kids have been climbing one of them.  Not the biggest one, and it's only been there for four years (and began as a stick-seriously)!  Anyway, the kids need a little help getting started, but then, watch out!

I just kept telling him, "No Higher!!"

A farther-away view (the fence is 6 foot high)!

She has really gotten better at pictures!  Love this one.

Sweet kids.  I have the best memories of a great climber at my grandma's house.  We would practically live there! (and pick crab apples, and drop flowers down, and we had a cousins' club..)

..and Clay finally got back!

Sweet girl.

We stayed out in the amazing decent weather till my eyes were getting dizzy from staring straight up in the sky watching for falling kids, then inside to check Monday folders!  They both got good grades, but Mary Claire had some not-very-good papers from this past week. : (  She had to work on them, then we started that yummy dinner!

I'm still reading that book (my one hundred adventures) with the kids, so we read till I fell asleep!  Clay wanted to keep going, so we read for over an hour-it was his birthday.

I can't believe ten years ago, I hadn't even gotten to see him yet.  I had gone into the hospital on the Monday after Thanksgiving with preeclampsia, Tuesday I was induced, and I had him on Wednesday, November 29th.  He was only four pounds since he was five weeks early, so he immediately went to the NICU.  He had a blue spell (stopped breathing), so he couldn't leave to come see me.  My heart stopped twice since I was on so much magnesium sulfate to keep me from having seizures or a stroke, so I couldn't leave my room or my monitors.  I remember I finally had them bring me a polaroid picture of him just so I could see him.  I was getting super anxious, as I'd hoped to nurse him.
Ches got a pump for me, but I was getting nowhere.  They'd told me Clay would be fine without eating for the first 24 hours, but I thought that was totally unacceptable!  I kept asking to see him, and finally I had a compassionate nurse that said he was more stable than I was, and she snuck him to me about three in the morning, on the 30th.  It'd been 12 hours, and I finally got to see him!  What precious joy.  I got to nurse him one more time (secretly) that night, and the next morning, my doctor said I could either have a shower or go see my baby (since I couldn't take the stress). I chose to go see him.  He thought he was giving me my first look, and I couldn't tell him. : )
It was a long road, and they released me before him, so we drove to the hospital to feed him for an hour, then we'd leave, and have two hours before we'd come back-for days.  We were losing it, but finally we got the call that he could come home-on a biliblanket.  He had jaundice by then, but we would've done anything at that point to bring him home!  It was late at night, and getting icy, but we were so thankful.  We've told him parts of the story, but it was so scary, to tell him all of it is too much. (maybe for us)
I'm just so thankful for my sweet little boy-I've had ten blessed years with him.  He's given us so much joy, taught us compassion and patience (waiting while in surgeries, and as he learns his boundaries), and taught us to look at the world with curious eyes (I'm just sure he'll never stop learning).  Thank you, God, for the blessing of his precious life!

We should learn when to shut up

Downloading pix from today...should be done by the time I finish writing.

Mary Claire had fun at the dance. She was quite the princess. I think it's great if the first dance you go to is with your dad. Then you have great memories of your first dance, and of your dad! It's also nice if the first time you really dress up (outside of Easter) is not for a boyfriend. Today was a small rite of passage-pantyhose and all. It was the first time we got her hair to curl on a curling iron (with some Vavoom! and hair spray), first for pantyhose (she just thought the very word was hilarious), and of course, the dance. She got to wear her new little sweater, pearls, carry her white purse, and a new bow. Just pure fun. I put some lip gloss on her as they were leaving, she blew me kisses, and was just a picture of pure happiness. If all our first memories could be that grand! : )

Then Ethan woke up, sick. Hot, irritable, coughing. He continued to cough, felt hot, and wouldn't chew any medicine. I tried to put him in the bath to cool/calm him down, but he wanted none of it. Big shock. He wanted his shirt back on. We went into the kitchen and I figured out he was having an asthma attack. He only does it when he's sick, but I could hear him wheezing on the exhale. I gave him a breathing treatment, and he totally quit coughing. He sat with me for about an hour an a half.

The tree men showed up, and we watched them for a while. They were scary. One climbed about 50 feet up, and went out on a limb to trim the hanging branches. So very scary, I had to quit watching. And every time a big limb fell, it would kind of shake the ground. Some would fall like daggers, and stab the ground-and stay standing up straight. The other two guys would come and pull them out of the ground, and load them on their trailer. Scary business. Now I know why they charge $100 an hour.

Anyway, we decided to order pizza and have mom and dad go by and get it on the way over. About that time is when Ethan started throwing up. All over my new Valentine's clothes. Ick. and it was red V8 Splash Juice. Did I say red? And he began the crying that didn't stop. I ran a bath-still no luck. I just washed him off with a washcloth while he was shaking, and put some jammies on him. I cleaned off, and he just wanted me to hold him. Ches got home soon after, and we waited on Mom and Dad to come. I gave him an Acephen (sounds like ass-and it goes there too). I also gave him ibuprofen in some root beer, which he eventually drank. I really just needed the fever to come down. He was so inconsolable. He finally perked up when the pizza came, and he actually ate-amazing. I was so worried he'd throw it back up, but he didn't. I'm not sure if it was the coughing gagging him, or the throw up girl from the ENT office on Thursday (spreading her germs!), or maybe the albuterol jacking him up too much. Who knows, just wash it all away, Kill The Germs!

Later, we had some fun with the kids, and read with them. Oh, and Mom decided to tell a secret. To Ches. Yeah, guess what that one was (Uh-huh, the blinky light car). She just thought she was so funny. He didn't think so. He's requested not to know some things. For a reason. Just like if a movie looks gross and scary, I send him alone, and ask him NOT to talk about it. Same thing. He doesn't want to know about Expensive Things Which Don't Concern Him. (Like having a dog spayed which doesn't belong to us. Tomorrow. Oh, but that's another story.) Anyway, she thinks it's so very funny to tell him this. He really has no other reaction, but, "Really? Again?" My sweetie. So she's disappointed. And then owes me Big Time. So she tries to be funny again, and gets a Forgiveness Flower (cute glittery art project from VBS last summer) from the kitchen and gives it to me. Ha. Ha.

Ok, so the story has gone cold, but needs to be told. Lexi stayed with mom while we were in Houston. She was precious and cute, but had trouble minding her poop and pee. She made on the bed, loveseat, floor, and occasionally the papers or pads. Mom was just sure she could potty train her. She thought I just didn't try hard enough. Well, she did her best, and to no avail. When we got back, we discussed where Lexi would stay, as we'd had the problem a couple weeks before when I was worried about how she was being treated here. So, we decided mom would keep her at her house, and I'd pay to have her spayed, and for her food/needs. Especially since Mom wasn't planning on having another dog. Well, it got harder. And the messes continued.

So story continues...There was a sweet couple that said they'd take Lexi, if we wanted them to have her. The husband is home all day, mostly in a wheelchair (Lexi just wants to sit and be held), and it sounded perfect for her. Mom took her over there, and the woman's name was the same as mom's, and it just seemed perfect, a Godsend. Mom took over all the stuff I'd given her for Lexi, and left her. When she called me, we both lost it (me crying in WM), but it seemed like the best thing for Lexi, which is what counted. Well, since I told Mom I'd have her spayed, it got around to the lady, and she asked for me to pay for it. Let's see. $650 for the dog, $177 for supplies, $94 for vet and rabies shot. Sure, let me shell out some more. This is the back story on why Ches does NOT want to know about expensive things that he doesn't need to know about that cause him unnecessary grief. Every time he thinks about it, he gets madder. So tomorrow is the day she loses her womanhood. So the piper shall be paid. I guess it's our last gift to her (the only way I can think about it). Maybe not having a baby in that tiny 2.5 pound frame will save her life. Anyway, we've mourned the loss of Lexi (and Clay has cried himself to sleep over her), but we still think she's better off with a family that can sit with her all day and is patient and can work with her constantly to potty train. We just worked as hard as we could, and couldn't do it. Sometimes love is just not enough (as Dr. Dobson tells us).

So, seriously when Ches says he doesn't want to know stuff (like I request Not to know what was on the 10pm news), he means it. He really doesn't get mad often. Like maybe two or three times a year. But they are ugly, and don't add to his life span. So, why inflict stress? By the way, don't tell me ugly things that I don't need to know. Don't gossip to me. Don't tell me yucky things that people do to each other, or other people. I can't handle it. I like to cure the world, and I can't fix those ugly things. So they just cause me to lose sleep and wish I didn't know. I have enough to handle that I wish I didn't know about. Prayer comes hard and fast around here. Try to find an hour in the day that I'm not conversing with God (well, sometimes he just wants me to shut up and do some listening).

So, everyday we learn little lessons. When to talk, when to shut up. When to feed red juice to the baby, when not to. When to introduce pantyhose. When to call in a specialist to climb your (they-don't-look-that-high) trees. When to call it quits. And now is a good time to shut up.

Can you make Splenda fly?

Long night with Mary Claire. She was high, so high. We had cake at Gigi's last night, and I am definitely not a pro at figuring desserts. She was over 400 for a while, then when I checked her at 3:20am, she was still 355. I gave her another big bolus, and she was 193 at 6:30am. Ah, rough night. I think I've got a cold now after lowering my immune system! After two nights of not sleeping so well (or being able to breathe), I don't feel so great. I'll have to try to get a nap today while Ethan is sleeping.

We were supposed to have someone fixing the roof hole ("stick"), "first thing in the morning". Well, where I come from (humble here), that means early. It's 12:12pm, and no sign of a worker. Tut, Tut, It looks like rain (on Friday). I hope my hole is closed off by then.

I had a guy (Caldwell Tree Service out of Atlanta) come to give us an estimate for removing tree limbs/branches, cleaning up, and trimming the massive hanging branches and broken ones. Long story short (rare with me), it was $800 for removal of trees from house, deck, and fence (insurance portion), and $2000 for my portion (trimming trees, removing hanging branches, clean up). Well, that's not something you plan on. I'll be interested to see what the insurance allotted for the tree mess.

The kids had class pictures today, and I forgot. I mean they looked cute enough (not over the top, but average cute), but I forgot to send the money in the little envelope so they could buy a class picture too. Ches didn't want me to run up to the school, and said they'd have everyone's pictures in the yearbook. There's just something about a class picture full of cute kids that you will remember when you are older. I just love looking at my preschool and kindergarten class pictures. I even went to high school with lots of those kids! : ) I guess we won't have one from this year. I feel bad, but not too bad.

I just can't do it all. I was focused this morning on just being very calm with the kids. I think Clay is acting up maybe because I can be loud and hyper and busy, and it's rubbing off on him! So I really focused on starting his day well. We'll see how he did. He had a rough day yesterday: no one wanted to play with him for indoor recess. Well, he was looking for someone to play tic-tac-toe with, and they were all playing games and blocks. Then he asked some kids if he could play blocks with them, and they said no. He was sad. I talked with him about it. I think the kids thought he might yell, be generally loud, and knock over their buildings (as he normally is). So we talked about how you act, and that you have to take responsibility for your behavior all the time, not just at recess. He's going to work on it today.

I've always been happy that he was so confident and happy, and he'd never be picked on, but now I can see it backfired, and maybe he's too confident (bossy?) and now he's odd man out. God does tell us to be like little children (faithful), but I think it applies in other ways too. If none of the kids want to play with you, maybe you're not being nice (or you are too loud!). He has to learn to play well with others.

Ok, load of laundry number 8 is almost complete. Did I say I missed it? Ok, I'll do it with a smile (and chocolate in my mouth). I vacuumed again, cleaned my bedroom (dusted!), and mopped. I had to do some by hand in the kitchen where the leak had run around the grout line. Yuck. I use my handy-dandy Clorox Ready mop-thing, but it doesn't get the cracks so well. I don't mind buying the absorbent pads since it's cheaper than paying someone else to mop my floor, and I don't really mind doing it (and I like my cleaning better than anyone else's). I got all the mirrors cleaned, and bathrooms aren't quite done. Dusting around all the stair rails/banister are next on the list.

Oh, and all the big ceilings are going to be repainted due to the stains. What color should I paint them? It seems like an opportunity to be creative, and maybe change it up a little. I could never paint those ceilings myself, and I've been wanting to paint my kitchen! Hmmm..I'll check out my Sherwin Williams paint fan...

I've Learned:
If you display toys inside glass cabinets, they become More Cool.

What Ethan's Learned:
If you are very careful, you can fit your Fruit Loops onto your pretzel sticks, and have tiny skewers or flat lollipops. It works best when all food items are spread out on the couch, so you can see the fruit loop hole sizes better (not all Fruit Loops have the same size hole!). If you pull off the fruit loop with your teeth, you can re-use the pretzel!

Funny: Made me Laugh!
Ethan was having some blueberries for lunch and saw me putting Splenda in my tea. He asked for some, and I put a tiny bit my his blueberries thinking he'd dip them. He was bending over and basically eating like a dog. When he exhaled, the fluffy (baking) Splenda went up in a puff on his face and settled back on the plate. So he did it again and again, clenching his eyes shut each time (having learned why), and every time he'd laugh out loud. He kept blowing out his nose on it making it fly up. Then he kept asking for more! (The part that made me laugh.)
And then, he dumped his plate. On the floor I'd just mopped. Now one spot is Extra Clean. (Not so much laughing now.) Nap time!